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Thermostat Hack, anybody? — Parallax Forums

Thermostat Hack, anybody?

tommyctommyc Posts: 7
edited 2006-02-13 16:35 in General Discussion
I'm working on a project that needs to display outdoor Temp and Humidity indoors.· I'm thinking that a digital thermostat would be a good form factor to provide a LCD display and a few pushbuttons.· The stamp would handle all of the intelligence, the tstat would be relatively "dumb".· Has anyone ever converted a thermostat into a serial LCD and PB array?

Comments

  • Lee_SpeakmanLee_Speakman Posts: 32
    edited 2006-02-11 22:17
    Do you mean just any old thermostat? It can be done, but you need to know the characteristics of the thermostat, as they are very rarely linear devices. Im sure ive seen a tutorial in one of the manuals ive got. Look in the user reference for the "POT" command, or it may be in the BS2 users manual. Why not use a DS1620 chip instead? There is tutorials for this too, it takes the temp and converts it into a 9bit binary number that can be sent to the stamp!
  • Chris SavageChris Savage Parallax Engineering Posts: 14,406
    edited 2006-02-12 00:20
    Tommy,

    ·· I built a digital thermostat a few years ago with completely customizable programmability.· I can post the code if you like.· My web page has been down since I moved so I don't have the complete details anymore, but I do have the code, and it's pretty self-explanatory.

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    Chris Savage
    Parallax Tech Support
    csavage@parallax.com
  • tommyctommyc Posts: 7
    edited 2006-02-12 01:24
    Thanks for the quick responses!

    I'm using the Sensiron Temp/RH sensor, so the getting accurate data into the stamp is no problem.·

    I've seen digital thermostats for around $20, and thought that the LCD and buttons would be worth the price if they could be utilized by the stamp (Not the on-board thermostat function).· ie: the stamp would write directly to the tstat LCD and the tstat buttons would be inputs to the stamp.

    Thanks,
    Tommy
  • Chris SavageChris Savage Parallax Engineering Posts: 14,406
    edited 2006-02-12 01:44
    These displays are usually custom to the application so your chances of making use of one for the BASIC Stamp are going to be slim.· Usually the display is not one that includes a controller, but rather the on-board device controller also handles the LCD (Field-Effect LCD).· In my project I simply used a 4X20 Hitachi compatible LCD Display.


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    Chris Savage
    Parallax Tech Support
    csavage@parallax.com
  • Paul Sr.Paul Sr. Posts: 435
    edited 2006-02-13 15:54
    Chris Savage (Parallax) said...
    Tommy,

    I built a digital thermostat a few years ago with completely customizable programmability. I can post the code if you like. My web page has been down since I moved so I don't have the complete details anymore, but I do have the code, and it's pretty self-explanatory.

    Chris,

    I am interested in doing a similar project so I would love to see the code and any other information on this you may have.

    Thanks,
    Paul
  • Chris SavageChris Savage Parallax Engineering Posts: 14,406
    edited 2006-02-13 16:26
    Okay, small disclaimer...This code is provided as-is and for educational purposes only·because I haven't touched it since before I left NY and moved to CA.· The code support multiple programs and multiple set temps for multiple times.· It was pretty straight-forward but because it was a prototype I wouldn't say the code is up to current standards.· Anyway I hope it helps.· It should save you some time anyway.· Enjoy!

    P.S. - Two files...One program was for setting the time since this was a one time thing (battery backup) I didn't include this in the main code.· Also saves space.

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    Chris Savage
    Parallax Tech Support
    csavage@parallax.com
    bs2
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    Digital Thermostat.bs2
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    Digital Thermostat Time Set.bs2
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  • Paul Sr.Paul Sr. Posts: 435
    edited 2006-02-13 16:35
    Chris Savage (Parallax) said...
    Okay, small disclaimer...This code is provided as-is and for educational purposes only because I haven't touched it since before I left NY and moved to CA. The code support multiple programs and multiple set temps for multiple times. It was pretty straight-forward but because it was a prototype I wouldn't say the code is up to current standards. Anyway I hope it helps. It should save you some time anyway. Enjoy!

    P.S. - Two files...One program was for setting the time since this was a one time thing (battery backup) I didn't include this in the main code. Also saves space.

    Understood.

    Thanks!
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